How to Add Captions to Instagram Stories

One of Instagram’s newest features is the ability to add captions to your Instagram Stories. This feature interprets what you or someone else is saying and generates text so your followers can read it. As convenient as this option may be for some users, it’s still not available in all regions.

In this article, we’ll show you how to add captions to Instagram Stories on different devices. We’ll also show you a workaround for doing this on your PC.

How to Add Captions to Instagram Stories on an iPhone

Now that Instagram has rolled out the captions feature, it will give your followers a chance to read or better listen to what you’re saying. Not only is the captions feature useful in situations where you can’t turn on your audio, but it makes Instagram more user-friendly to those who are hard of hearing. Once you enable it, Instagram will automatically generate captions that record what you or someone else says in the video.

Note that this feature is only available when your Instagram Story is a video. It doesn’t work with photos. You can use it on prerecorded videos or make a video using Instagram Stories and add the captions afterward. Keep in mind that it currently works just for the English language, so it’s only available in English-speaking countries. However, this might change soon.

If you want to add captions to your Instagram Story on your iPhone, this is what you need to do:

1. Open Instagram on your iPhone.
   
2. Tap on the “Your Story” bubble in the top-left corner, or simply swipe left on your home page.
   
3. Record a video or upload one from your gallery.
4. Tap the sticker icon on the top menu.
   
5. Choose “Captions” from the list of options.
   
6. Decide on a text format.
   
7. Edit the text’s format any way you want.
8. Select “Done” in the upper-right corner.
   
9. Tap on the “Your Story” tab in the bottom-left corner to post it.
   

Not only does Instagram allow you to add captions to your Story, but you can also edit the text’s format. For example, you can change the size, color, and location of the text. Also, you have four different text fonts to choose from. There’s always a chance that your speech wasn’t accurately transcribed, and unfortunately, it’s currently not possible to edit the text itself. That’s why you should speak as clearly as possible when recording the video.

The captions functionality is currently only available for Instagram Stories, but it might also be possible with Instagram Reels in the near future.

How to Add Captions to Instagram Stories on an Android Device

The captions feature is also available on Instagram for Android devices. What’s more, it will only take you a minute or so to enable it. Follow the steps below to add captions to your Instagram Story on your Android:

1. Launch the Instagram app on your Android device.
   
2. Go to your profile picture in the top-left corner or swipe to the left side of your screen.
   
3. Make a video or upload one you’ve previously recorded.
4. Proceed to the top menu and tap on the sticker icon.
   
5. Select “Captions.”
   
6. Choose the font, color, size, and location of your captions.
7. Continue to “Done” in the top-right corner of your screen.
   
8. Post your Story by tapping on the “Your Story” tab.
   

That’s all there is to it. Now your followers or anyone else who is viewing your Story will be able to read your captions.

If you can’t find the captions feature in your sticker menu, it’s possible that Instagram Story captions still aren’t available in your country. Make sure you’re using the newest version of the app. As mentioned before, if you’re not speaking English, then the captions feature won’t be available for your Instagram Story.

If your video is relatively short, and you only say a few sentences, you can still add text to your Instagram story; you just have to type it in yourself. Here’s how it’s done:

1. Open “Your Story” on your Instagram app.
   
2. Upload the video or film one to use.
3. Tap on the “Aa” button on the top menu.
   
4. Manually type in what you said in the video.
   
5. Choose the text’s font, color, size, alignment, transition, etc.
   
6. Tap “Done” in the top-right corner.
   
7. Post your Story.
   

Even though the regular text feature isn’t like the captions feature, it’s an excellent alternative for shorter videos.

How to Add Captions to Instagram Stories on a PC

Since there is no direct way to post an Instagram Story on your PC, the captions feature isn’t available either. However, you can use a two-step workaround to add captions to your Instagram Story and post it from your PC. Firstly, you will need to add captions to your video with a third-party app on your computer. From there, you can either transfer the video to your phone or post it from your browser.

Let’s go over how to add captions to your video first. While there are many third-party apps you can use, we recommend going with Google Drive.

For this method, you need to have the video uploaded to your Google Drive account. Then, the captions have to be written in an SRT format, which should be saved on your computer or your Google Drive. Here’s what you need to do next:

1. Open Google Drive on your browser.
   
2. Find the video file you just uploaded and right-click on it.
   
3. Select “Manage Caption Tracks” from the drop-down menu.
   
4. Click on “Add New Caption Tracks” on the right side of the video.
   
5. Go to the “Upload” tab on the new window.
   
6. Drag the file to the window or click on the “Select a file from your device” button.
   
7. Find the SRT file and choose “Open.”
   
8. Select the language of your captions.
   
9. Enter the caption track’s title.
   
10. Choose “Upload.”
    

Now that you’ve added the captions to your video, download it to your computer. It’s time to post it on your Instagram. Follow the steps below to do just that:

1. Open Google Chrome or your preferred browser on your PC.
   
2. Press these keys “Ctrl + Shift + J” at the same time. This will open the Developer Console window on the left side of your browser.
   
3. Navigate to the phone icon on the top toolbar. It should be on the left side of the “Elements” tab.
   
4. Choose the “Dimensions: Responsive” tab. Once you do this, your screen will be minimized, resembling a phone.
   
5. Refresh your page.
   
6. Go to Instagram.
   
7. Click on the story bubble.
   
8. Upload the video from your computer.
9. Edit the video any way you want.
10. Post your Instagram Story.

This method may seem more complicated, but it pays off if you can’t use your mobile device at the moment. It’s also more robust since you compile the captions by yourself. You’ll be able to write down the captions accurately, and they don’t have to be in English.

Make Your Instagram Stories Even Better With Captions

While adding text to your Instagram stories has always been a handy feature, automatically generated captions are even better. They allow your followers to read what you’re talking about when they can’t hear you. Even though this feature isn’t available across the whole globe yet, there are things you can do to add captions manually.

Have you ever added captions to your Instagram Story before? How did you do it? Did you follow the method from this guide? Let us know in the comments section below.